Police wary of Akron program meant to ease jail overcrowding

March 20, 2017

Written by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

AKRON, Ohio (AP) — An effort to ease jail overcrowding in one northeastern Ohio county is drawing concern from police chiefs, who are wary of not immediately jailing people charged with nonviolent, low-level felonies.

The Akron Beacon Journal (http://bit.ly/2nJRwy8 ) reports that officials in Akron have tried a program in which some of those defendants get a summons to appear in court instead of waiting in jail for an initial appearance. A jail official says the effort noticeably reduced jail bookings.

Backers hope to expand the program in Summit County using a $50,000 MacArthur Foundation grant, but not everyone is on board.

That includes Barberton Chief Vincent Morber, who leads the Summit County Police Chiefs Association. He says low-level felony offenders are often the suspects who most need screening and assessment through the jail.